Last month, it emerged that the commissioners have invested money in the same payday lenders that were strongly criticised by the Archbishop of Canturbury.

The commissioners are seeking to assert the Church’s ownership of mineral rights beneath up to 500,000 acres of land, an area roughly the size of Sussex.

The claim is being made under laws dating back to the Norman conquests, which give “lords of the manor” rights to exploit the earth under property on their former estates.

The Church, which has owned some of its land for centuries, holds such rights in many parts of England, including some where geologists say there is scope to extract energy by fracking.

Under a new law, landowners have until October to assert their rights over mineral rights. The commissioners have told the Land Registry that they wish to do so.

As a result, the registry is now sending official legal letters to residents informing them of the Church’s “unilateral” claim to benefit from any mines and minerals under their land.

Several Telegraph readers who have received such letters have expressed concerns that the Church’s claim could be linked to future fracking projects.

One recipient was Dr Richard Lawson, a retired GP who lives in the Mendip Hills in Somerset.

He suggested that the Church action is linked to fracking noting that there are proposals for fracking projects elsewhere in Somerset.

Dr Lawson said: “It’s an ethical question for the Church – will they use their mineral rights to block fracking or to make money out of it?”

Another recipient, from Nottinghamshire, accused the Church of a “blunderbuss approach” to mineral rights.

“It’s quite perplexing that you can own your own home but then someone comes along and tells you they own the ground beneath your feet,” said the resident, who did not want to be named.

His home is less than five miles from an area with proven oil reserves, he said, adding: “It’s a bit of a coincidence that this happens when people are talking about fracking.”

In a statement, the commissioners said the claims were caused by a change in the law in 2002 which sets a deadline for registering historic mineral rights.

“We would make clear that this is just a registration and protection exercise to protect existing rights and interests made vulnerable by the change in the law. There are no particular plans to mine under any property. The focus is registration and protection,” the statement said.

A Church spokeswoman said that the registration had “is absolutely no link with fracking”, but admitted that the legal position on unconventional energy extraction “remains unclear.” She added: “We have certainly had no approaches for our land.”

Caroline Almond, a lawyer at Squire Saunders, said that historic rights like those asserted by the Church could allow claimants to profit from fracking.

“In relation to fracking, as long as the landowners with “Lords of the Manor” rights gain planning permission they can profit from shale gas reserves despite local objection to drilling,” she wrote on the firm’s blog.